From the videos I’ve seen online when a rocket lift’s off the rocket boosters separate from the capsule. What are they and why do they separate?
In: 2
It’s very hard to get into orbit. You don’t want to take any more mass with you than you need to, so as you go you drop off bits that you no longer need.
Take SpaceX’s Falcon 9 for example. The first stage has 9 rocket engines and two large fuel tanks. Once the fuel is gone the tanks are just dead weight. Likewise, with all the weight of that fuel gone, you don’t need all nine engines. So drop off that stage, about two minutes into the flight.
The second stage has two smaller fuel tanks and just one rocket engine, which is more than enough for what it has to push the rest of the way to orbit.
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